In Plain Sight
by Kelliestar
Summary: The Shibusen gang go undercover to find a kishin responsible for a string of murders surrounding a California high school. Forced to enroll, Shinigami-sama leaves them with a warning: don't let petty drama blind them from the mission. SoulxMaka, KidxPatty
1. Chapter 1: Transfer

**A/N: How do? My name's Kelliestar, and this is my first Soul Eater fanfic, so I hope I'll do all right for a first try. The summary for this was kinda crap, but this chapter pretty much explains what's going on. This isn't gonna be pure SoulxMaka fluff or anything, but I guarantee there will be SoulxMaka. Same thing for KidxPatty, but it's more on the minor side.**

**Anyway, enjoy. :)**

**Soul Eater (c) Atsushi Ohkubo**

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* * *

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Chapter 1: Transfer

"You're late."

"Sorry. The shelter's kinda far from here and my bunkmate was having another episode, so I had to calm him before I left."

"Whatever. You got the list?"

"Yeah, it's right here."

"Good . . . I don't see Jenny's name."

"Huh?"

"Why isn't Jenny here?"

"I dunno."

"What do you mean you don't know? You're the one who wrote the damn thing."

". . . I like Jenny."

"And?"

"Well . . . she shouldn't be on the list."

"Why?"

"Because she's nice. She hasn't done anything wrong to anybody, so why should she –"

"That's it? Because she's nice?"

"No, I –"

"So you're saying she's better than everyone else here? That she doesn't deserve this but all these other people do?"

"I didn't mean –"

"Maybe you forgot how things work here. I, am rich. You, are homeless. The rich people make money, and the poor people do stuff for them. What are you doing for me?"

"Putting people on the list."

"Right. And why do those people go on the list?"

"Because you say so?"

"Exactly. That said, keep writing those lists, don't forget your place, and we won't have a problem."

"But Jenny –"

"She's going on the list."

". . . Okay."

"Good."

"C-Can we end this early?

"Why?"

"I'm hungry."

". . . Fine. Do what you want."

"Thanks."

". . . Freak."

* * *

"Ugh . . . Are we there yet?" an agonized Liz groaned, her feet pulled up in her chair and drool down her chin.

"I think I see the airport from here, Liz-chan," Tsubaki replied, glancing out the airplane window. "We should be landing in a few minutes."

"Finally!" Black*Star exclaimed, his legs crossed tightly and his hands to his nether regions. "My ass is asleep and I gotta piss like a horse!"

Behind Black*Star, Kid cocked a perfectly plucked brow, his chin resting in his left hand. "You _do_ know there's a restroom on this plane, right?"

"No there's not! The thing's been shut down since we got here, I even checked!"

"Actually, Black*Star," Tsubaki timidly admitted, "I went about an hour ago and its fine."

"Me too," Liz added.

"What?" As if the discovery set something off in his system, Black*Star started squirming around, kicking his legs wildly as his bladder began to weaken. "So what've I been holding my pee for?"

"Well you'll have to hold it a bit longer," Liz said. "Patty went in about ten minutes ago."

"_Ten minutes_? Who spends _ten minutes_ in a restroom?"

"Patty," Liz and Kid said in unison.

Black*Star let out a growl of frustration and thumped his head against the back of Soul's seat. Somehow, this didn't wake the crimson-eyed albino, who was sleeping soundly against Maka's shoulder, his spiky white hair bristling against her neck. His mouth hung open a bit, and his snores sounded much like a quiet vacuum cleaner, but it didn't seem to bother the blond bookworm. Her mind was too enveloped in her copy of Jane Eyre to mind the snoring, although either way she wouldn't care at all. His head felt kind of nice. His hair was fluffy.

"Raaar!"

The four other Shibusen students glanced down the aisle. Walking towards them with her arms jutting forward, walking with a robotic stride, Patty had returned from the restroom, now covered head to toe in toilet paper.

"Raaaaar, I'm a mummy!" she giggled, her forever luminescent blush glowing behind the thin paper.

Liz shook her head, hoping the flight attendant didn't look Patty's way and charge them for overusing the toilet paper. Kid pinched the bridge of his nose and gritted his teeth, fighting the urge to tear the "costume" off her and cause a ruckus on the plane. Patty simply sat down, giggling as she leaned playfully against her meister.

"It's about time," Black*Star muttered, unbuckling his seat belt and standing up to go to the restroom.

At that moment, the flight attendant called down the aisle, "Sir, please stay seated! We'll be landing in two minutes!"

Black*Star let out a desperate cry and tried to make a run for it, only to be restrained by Tsubaki. This didn't help to slow the boy down as he screamed and shouted curse words at the stewardess, drawing attention to both himself and his well-endowed partner.

All this commotion still wasn't able to wake Soul, who mumbled something about Excalibur as he snuggled into Maka's shoulder. Maka smiled, gently petting his hair to calm him down. Her efforts worked, and with a sigh, Soul was peaceful again.

She looked out the window as Black*Star continued to make a fool out of himself. Dozens of palm trees sprung up from the concrete as the earth titled up towards them. The streets below were buzzing, the ant-like traffic causing an unmistakable drone that polluted the air and provided a soundtrack for the people around them.

She'd never been to California before. She didn't think any of them had. She had heard stories of places in California that piqued her interest: the California Science Center, the Getty Museum, the Griffith Observatory. However tempting it was to see them, she knew this was no time to go sight-seeing. This was strictly a mission and a mission only, not an all-expenses free-paid trip to Hawaii courtesy of Shibusen.

It was only a week ago when the seven of them were called to the Death Room. None of them knew the reason for being summoned, but there Shinigami-sama was, waiting for them with the patience of an enlightened monk.

"Hi-hiiii!" he greeted cheerfully with his disproportionately large hands. "How are ya? How's your weekend so far? Got any parties planned, hmmm?"

No one responded.

Unfazed by this, Shinigami-sama went on. "I suppose you're all wondering why I asked you to come to school on a Saturday morning?"

"Because we all owe you Saturday school?" Soul yawned loudly, having had to be literally dragged out of bed by Maka.

"Noooo!" Shinigami-sama chimed. "Although I'm sure you owe Dr. Stein one, if I'm not mistaken?"

Soul grumbled, not wanting to be reminded.

"Anyway," Shinigami-sama continued, "the reason I called you all here is because of a certain mission I believe only you can handle." He turned to Spirit, standing behind him with his hands lazily in his pockets. "Spirit, if you please?"

Spirit nodded and hopped behind the mirror, pulling out a large easel with a drawing pad on it. Setting it down in front of the children, Shinigami-sama stepped aside to give Spirit his spotlight. He dusted his jacket and cleared his throat before speaking, flipping open the pad. The words "OPERATION: TRANSFER" stared back at them in big bold letters.

"Your mission," Spirit began, "is a dangerous and risky one, although not for reasons you might be familiar with. Recently we've been receiving distress calls from California concerning a string of murders targeting high school students, both male and female."

He turned another page, revealing a crude drawing of a school. "The school in particular is known as James Fouster High School. Up until now, Fouster's been considered a relatively safe place. The murders only started a few months ago under supernatural circumstances. Upon investigation of the site and the victims' bodies, we've come to the conclusion that a kishin is responsible. The problem is, according to witness accounts, the kishin is taking the form of someone from the school; most likely, a student.

"Your mission . . . " Spirit turned the page, this time revealing an even cruder drawing of Maka surrounded by hearts and cherry blossoms. His face paled, and he jumped in front of the drawing to conceal it. "S-Sorry!" The bumbling redhead flipped desperately through the drawing pad to find the correct illustration, but Maka, far past annoyed by this point, had seen quite enough of her father's drawings.

Finally, he found the right one, stepping aside. "Your mission!" He gestured his arm to a drawing of California, a skull sticker marking which city the school was located. "Next Sunday, you'll all be flying to California to attend Fouster High School. The move won't be permanent, but you'll be attending the school until you find and defeat the kishin. You've already been enrolled, but your last names have been slightly altered to keep your true identities secret. Liz, Tsubaki, your ages have been altered as well, so you'll be in the same grade as the others. You'll all have at least one class together so you'll be able to exchange information on the kishin as the school day goes on. Any questions?"

There was a brief silence among the group before Black*Star spoke up. "What about that dangerous and risky thing you mentioned? Sounds pretty simple to me."

Spirit started to speak, but Shinigami-sama put a heavy hand on his shoulder. "I believe I should be the one to explain, Spirit." At this command, Spirit left to store the easel away as the death god spoke to his students. "Kids, how many of you have been to a _normal_ public school? Outside of Death City?"

Only Soul raised his hand.

"I see . . . " Shinigami-sama observed, rubbing the chin on his mask. "So I assume you're familiar with what to expect in Fouster?"

"Pretty much."

"Mmhmm. Then this only applies to the rest of you." Shinigami-sama's arms disappeared inside his cloak. "You are all very lucky to be going to a school like Shibusen. There are no jocks, no cliques, posers and fakes never last more than the first quarter, and aside from the occasional bully, popularity contests are almost nonexistent."

The meisters and weapons all nodded in agreement, but only Soul, Liz and Patty understood him.

"You've never heard those terms until now, have you?" Shinigami-sama asked, his tone turning serious.

Those left over shuffled awkwardly, embarrassed.

"You'll become familiar with them when you start attending Fouster. Public schools are much different than the schools in Death City. Here, one is judged by their academic performance and their endurance in the battlefield. In public schools, one is judged by looks alone. Sadly, the only way one can handle the pressure of public high schools is through past experience or particularly excellent street smarts." He nodded towards Liz and Patty.

"As you may have guessed, we do not live in a normal town. We are taught about meisters, weapons, and kishin from a very young age. That being said, nobody in Fouster will know what a kishin is. In this mission, the key is hiding in plain sight. You are not to discuss affiliations with Shibusen or your weapon or meisterhood outside of your group. You do not discuss your true intentions, and above all, keep it on the down-low.

"As I said earlier, those with prior public school experience or a certain amount of street smarts may not have such a hard time during this mission. Those of you with neither, prepare to be shocked by what you see. Those of you popular here might not be so popular at Fouster. Some of you may be more popular than others, for reasons you wouldn't expect. You might even start to hear stories about yourselves you know aren't true. But don't let all these problems get in the way of your mission. Remember: you are undercover as Shibusen students. You may stay there for a week. You may stay there for a month. Even so, you must stay strong as a team and focus on the goal. Don't let gossip and other minor problems get to you. The innocent lives of students are at stake. You must be strong, all of you, if you want to save Fouster from the kishin."

The three teams shifted nervously, exchanging worrisome glances with each other.

"Now," Shinigami-sama announced, "who wants California roooolls?"

* * *

"Attention passengers. You have now arrived at LAX."

"Yah-hoo!" Black*Star eagerly cheered, scrambling out of his seat to use the toilet after hours of waiting.

"Please remain seated until the plane has come to a complete -"

"SON OF A BITCH!" Black*Star hollered, having to be restrained again by Tsubaki before authorities could be called.

"Disneylaaand!" Patty cheered enthusiastically, clapping her hands to her own imaginary beat. "Disneyland, Disneyland, Disneyland, Disneyland, Disneyland!"

Liz groaned, having dealt with Patty's exuberant cheering of "Disneyland" for the past week. "For the last time, Patty, we are not going to Disneyland."

Kid sighed, having had enough of Patty's insistence as well. "Where on earth did she get the idea we were going to Disneyland?"

"Gee, I don't know," Liz said, grinding her teeth. "Maybe it was after the meeting with your dad when you said 'Hey, isn't Disneyland in CALIFORNIA'?"

"Disneylaaaand!" Patty giggled, clapping again.

The other two shared a groan.

Maka put a placeholder in her book and tucked it under her arm, using the other to shake Soul from his nap. "Soul. Soul, wake up."

Soul's eyes tightened, then fluttered open as he let out a tired moan. He looked up at Maka, wiping his mouth on his sleeve. She smiled sweetly at him, the sun behind her forming a halo around her head, and he returned a toothy smirk. "We're here?"

"Just landed," she whispered back.

"Cool," he sighed, rubbing his eye as he sat up in his seat.

Maka rested her book on her lap, bringing a thoughtful finger to her lip as her friend got up to stretch. Simultaneously, everyone else in the plane got up to take their bags from the overhead storage. "Hey Soul?"

"Hmm?" Soul glanced down at her, scratching his messy hair.

Maka stood up from her seat, hugging her book to her chest. "About the mission . . ."

Soul allowed his arm to drop to the side, shaking off his weariness. "What about it? You scared or something?"

"No." She drummed her fingers against the hardcover of her book, a little embarrassed to ask. "I was just wondering, with you having been to public school before . . . do you think I'll make it?"

Soul brows perked up in surprise at her simple question. After a few seconds, he chuckled softly, patting his meister's arm reassuringly.

"You won't last a day."


	2. Chapter 2: Settling In

Chapter 2: Settling In 

Today was not Black*Star's day.

"Are we freaking there yet?"

"I told you to go before we left, Black*Star . . ."

"I tried but they were closed for cleaning! I swear I'm gonna have to piss out the window if I have to hold it any longer!"

And if Black*Star was going to have a bad day, he was determined that everyone else should.

It was an hour-long ride from the airport to their destination, San Alba, and since first entering the limousine – which Kid called Azrael – everyone had to deal with the ninja's pleas for a toilet. Kid himself covered his ears while a furious Liz was restrained only by her seat belt and a desire to get to the apartment complex without alarming nearby police. Patty was already distracted by the sights outside of the limo, sticking her head out like a shaggy dog in need of fresh air, smiling broadly with her tongue flapping out. Maka tried to busy herself by reading her book, which Soul, much to her annoyance, vocally disapproved of her doing while they were in a moving vehicle. Though she didn't want to admit it, Maka _was_ feeling sick, but she didn't want Soul to be the victor in this argument. By far, the calmest in the limo was Tsubaki, who attempted, with failure, to calm her meister.

To top it all off, it was 102 degrees Fahrenheit outside the limo, and they were caught in traffic. Everyone inside, save for Patty and Tsubaki, was at their boiling point.

Black*Star leaned forward in his leather seat, holding his privates. "HEY! LIMO DRIVER! WHERE'S THE NEAREST GAS STATION?"

The limo driver, a body of black smoke with a hockey mask, merely glanced back at Black*Star before returning his attention to the road.

"HEY!" Black*Star wrestled out of his seat belt, hobbling over to the window dividing the group from the driver. "Don't ignore me, you weird ass smoke cloud!"

He was ignored again. Tsubaki pulled nervously on his shorts. "Black*Star, put your seat belt on! You're gonna get hurt!"

"We're gonna get a ticket if you're caught, too," Liz remarked, red-faced and clawing at her seat, caring less about Black*Star's safety and more about her slipping sanity. "And Smokey up there's not gonna be the one paying twenty dollars just because you can't _SIT YOUR ASS DOWN_!"

Black*Star knelt down to her level, squirming from leg to leg. "I got a fucking situation going on here!" He yelled at the driver again. "AND YOUR PRECIOUS LEATHER SEATS ARE GONNA STINK LIKE ASPARAGUS IF YOU DON'T PULL OVER!"

Now Liz was the one without a seat belt. "WE'RE STUCK IN FUCKING TRAFFIC, HOW CAN HE MOVE _ANYWHERE_ CRAMMED BETWEEN A VOLKSWAGON, A CHEVY, A TOYOTA AND A _MOTORBOAT_?"

Tsubaki watched on, her hand to her mouth on concern. "Guys . . ."

"I'LL MOTORBOAT _YOU_ IF YOU DON'T BACK OFF!"

"YOU EVEN PUT A _HAND_ ON ME AND I'LL TURN YOU INSIDE-OUT FROM YOUR ASSHO—"

***MAKA-CHOP!***

Both troublemakers were silenced, moaning as large throbbing bumps protruded from their foreheads. Maka was only disappointed she had dented her copy of Jane Eyre.

Kid pulled his fingers from his ears, glaring down at the ninja. "If you had stopped to calm down a bit, I would've told you the driver's mute. Moreover, if you intentionally urinated on his seats, the souls of the damned that curse this very limousine would invade your slumber and give you vivid nightmares of the apocalypse, slowly driving you to paranoia and suicidal madness."

The limousine instantly went quiet.

" . . . Why did you have to mention that, Kiiiiid?" Liz whimpered, now close to tears.

Patty pulled her head back into the limo, a wide smile still stretched across her face. "Heheh, there's a girl flashing her tits outside!"

Black*Star and Liz quickly shot up from their places. "Where?" In the blink of an eye, the three were gathered at the window and fighting to get a peek, completely forgetting the events that took place not too long ago.

Patty burst into laughter, kicking her legs*. "Made you look!"

Each took turns at glaring at Patty. Kid pinched the bridge of his nose. "Patty, you can goof off when we're on an actual vacation. Right now we have to focus on the mission and –"

She turned to Kid and sat on her knees, now donning a mischievous grin. "Bet you'd love it if _I_ flashed my tits, huh, Kiddo?"

A bright red flash streaked across Kid's face. "D-Don't be ridiculous, Patty, this is no place for tomfoolery!"

Patty lifted the bottom of her white spaghetti tank, showing him her toned stomach. "What if I did it now?"

"Patty!" Kid tried to pull her top back down, throwing the blonde into a giggle fit. "I refuse to let you participate in this kind of public exhibitionism!"

Patty held back his arms, a smile on her face as she sneakily wrapped her legs around him. "You'd probably think differently if it was in private."

Kid's face grew even redder, trying to disguise his embarrassment and clear arousal with a strict demeanor. "Public or private, this game you're trying to attempt is indecent and uncalled for!"

Liz sat next to Soul, and Maka's attention was finally taken away from her book. The trio watched as Kid wrestled against Patty, the blonde laughing her head off as he pulled at her shirt. Liz watched with her chin in her hand, bored, as Soul and Maka watched the fight in confusion.

"Uh . . . what's with them?"

"Huh?" Liz glanced down at Soul. "Oh, this is their new thing. Long story."

Soul and Maka exchanged a brief glance of bewilderment, then simply shrugged and lied back. Chaos continued to consume the limo. Patty continued to boldly tease an already flustered Kid while Black*Star returned to dancing around and trying to hold his urine.

"Already they're acting like it's spring break."

The image of the crazed teenagers running amok reflected off Shinigami-sama's mirror, the students unaware they were being watched. Shinigami-sama turned away from the mirror and glanced at Spirit, who was watching the whole spectacle with him. "They're just kids, Spirit. They can have a little fun."

Spirit turned to the silly death god, reluctance in his eyes. "Are you sure it was right to send them on a mission like this?"

Shinigami-sama turned away to wipe a small smudge off the mirror. "There are certain people in the world who don't know about Shibusen. Many who've never heard of meisters, weapons, or kishin."

"I know that."

"Well, don't you think _they_ should know too?"

Inside the mirror, the show only got worse. Black*Star had started trying to climb out the window to urinate while Tsubaki tried to pull him back in. Patty had trapped Kid in a headlock while he called for mercy. Liz simply filed her nails, deaf to his cries.

"I'm not sure they can handle the mission," Spirit muttered.

"You need to have more faith in them. I'm sure you're aware that, in certain cultures, the number seven is a lucky number, right?" Shinigami-sama tapped the glass. "Now it may be pure coincidence, but as one, how many meisters and weapons make up this team?"

Spirit glanced at the mirror, then back to his meister. " . . . What are you saying, Shinigami-sama?"

"I'm saying," he continued, "that you don't give them enough credit. For as long as I can remember, this particular group has achieved what most others their age couldn't. I sent them on this mission for two reasons: one, together, they make an unstoppable force. Two, if they are going to be unstoppable, they must learn, first hand, that people won't always know who they are. They must learn to fight undercover, and not make a spectacle on themselves."

"So what do you expect them to do," Spirit challenged, "when there's no choice but to do that?"

There was a brief pause from the death god. Spirit flinched a bit, bracing himself for a shinigami-chop, but none came. The image of the rambunctious kids faded from the mirror.

"They won't always be able to hide."

* * *

"Whoa. . ."

If the golden entrance room to the building wasn't enough to wow the group, the penthouse left them wandering around their temporary home in awe, eyes wide and mouths agape.

Except for Black*Star.

"BATHROOM!" he hollered as he broke through the group, running into the apartment and searching desperately for sanctuary.

The expansive living room was enough to fit a gathering of twenty. A small cream colored rug rested in the middle of the dark chocolate hardwood floor, becoming the resting place for four small luxurious blue couches all facing each other; a small coffee table resided between them. Closer to the entrance of the apartment, a dining table fit for eight sat opposite a large kitchen. All around the living room, save for the hall leading to a beautiful white fireplace area and spiral stairs, large windows showed off a beautiful view of the city of San Alba.

The staircase led to three bedrooms and two bathrooms. Except for one room, which bore three beds instead of two, each room was identical: a large plasma screen TV, queen-sized water beds, a computer desk, a walk-in closet, and a skylight. The end of the hall led to a sliding glass door, opening to a great balcony with a barbecue pit, a bar, fold-up tanning chairs and . . .

"A POOL!" Liz cheered as she eagerly dove in, Patty splashing in behind her. The sisters squealed and laughed, hugging each other as if they inherited the penthouse for themselves.

The remaining four watched them with a smile, enjoying the sight themselves. Maka turned to Kid, her book still hugged to her chest. "Your dad wasn't kidding when he said he'd give us the best, huh, Kid?"

Kid grinned proudly at her. "Father always keeps his word. He promises what no one else can."

"How long can we stay?" Tsubaki asked. "This must be expensive."

"Like he said, however long it takes." He looked back to the pool. "We're only renting this place, but he's paying for it. We can stay as long as it takes to find the kishin, whoever that may be."

"We'll be staying for long then," Soul muttered.

The three turned to him curiously.

"Shinigami-sama's warning . . . he didn't just say that to scare us." He turned to them. "Unless you've actually been to a normal public school, you're gonna die there. If you're not careful, stories are gonna start flying about you guys. Probably even all of us. And it'll get to your heads if you don't know how to deal with that. If any of us starts to get paranoid about each other, we're gonna fail the mission."

Maka rolled her eyes at the ridiculousness of his warning. "Soul, the only one trying to scare us is you. Just because you've been to public school, it doesn't mean you can tease us like that. It's just Shibusen without the same curriculum, right? How bad could it be?"

Soul's tone dropped. "Your dad wanted me to talk to you about that."

Maka's blood chilled at Soul's words. Did her father know something she didn't?

Soul nodded his head towards the exit, urging her to follow. Maka sighed, following him back inside. Only mere seconds after did Black*Star run out, jumping into the pool. "CANONBAAAALL!"

The splash was enormous, almost wetting Kid and Tsubaki. Liz and Patty squealed in surprise, playfully splashing water in Black*Star's face, to which he responded by teasingly trying to drown them. Tsubaki smiled at the sight of her partner enjoying himself so much, touching her arm gingerly. "I think I should go set up our things. He'll need to change his clothes soon."

And so Tsubaki left Kid alone by the poolside. He didn't mind being left alone; in fact, he was enjoying the sight himself.

In the water, Patty was trying to climb on Liz's shoulders, Black*Star having suggested a game of Chicken. Her hair was matted around her chubby bright red cheeks, and her crystal blue eyes shone jubilantly. Liz protested Patty climbing on her, wobbling around and claiming not to have upper body strength. Patty simply giggled and proceeded to bother her sister. Kid smiled at Patty's laugh, his own cheeks warming up. He couldn't explain it, but recently, he was starting to find her laugh enchanting, and the girl herself rather magnetic. It was a baffling feeling, one he'd never felt before, but Patty didn't protest to his new feelings. In fact, she embraced it fully, possibly even reciprocated it. Liz didn't very much appreciate it, but it made their newfound relationship more interesting, especially on Patty's part.

Patty's eyes suddenly turned on him, and her smile grew wider. Kid's smile fell as their eyes locked, but the heat to his face became more fervid. He stepped back, as if thinking of a way to escape.

"Kiddo!" she called, waving him over. "Jump in, we're gonna play Chicken!"

Kid clenched his teeth and regained his composure. He cleared his throat into his fist, returning to his serious self. "We have no time for horseplay. Father said to contact him once we settled in, and we have two weeks of clothes to unpack."

"But Kiddo," she whined, slightly tugging on Liz's hair, "we have the rest of the day to do that! Just one game, please?"

"One game is one too much," Kid insisted. "Like Father said, we have no time for meaningless distractions." He gently tugged the lapels of his suit. "But if you're going to play around like a child, I'll unpack everything myself. We'll be waiting for you when you're finished."

With that, Kid left the balcony, leaving the three to stare at him as he left.

"Damn," Black*Star muttered. "Kill-joy."

Patty pouted, a hurt expression on her face as she burrowed her nose in Liz's crown. Liz sighed and rubbed Patty's leg in sympathy. "Don't worry about it, Patty. He's just being an ass."

Black*Star turned to Liz and Patty. "What's up with Kid? He's been acting weird . . . er."

"Things have been going on between him and Patty," Liz explained. "He's not really . . . _open_ about it yet."

"Why not?"

Liz huffed. "Probably some shinigami bullshit, but I swear, if he hurts her, I'mma scalp him in his sleep. Asymmetrically."

Black*Star smirked. "I can help with that last part."

Patty's shoulders bobbed, a small giggle bubbling out of her. Liz smiled, patting her sister's knee. "Hey. I bet they have ice cream in the fridge."

Patty grinned.

* * *

"What did Papa want you to tell me?"

Soul closed the door behind him for privacy. Maka sat on the water bed, waiting with curiosity for Soul to speak. He sat down in the bed before her, resting his elbows on his knees as he leaned forward. "Listen, Maka. I know you're a smart girl and everything, but I'm with your dad on this. We don't think you'll be able to handle tomorrow."

Maka's brows drew together. "What? You mean you want me to skip out on tomorrow?"

"I'm not saying that," Soul explained. "But he told me he didn't think you were ready to take on public school. I wasn't sure I agreed, but after what you said out there, I don't think you _are_ going to make it."

"You never thought I could," Maka argued. "On the plane you said –"

"Then I was kidding," Soul admitted. "I thought you'd be smart enough to trust Shinigami-sama's word that normal schools aren't like Shibusen. Apparently I was wrong."

Maka scowled, turning red. "How are you so sure I won't make it?"

"You're a really emotional girl, Maka," Soul said. "Not only that, you're hot-tempered. No one at Fouster knows who you are. All they'll know is that you're cute, innocent, and smart, so you'll be an easy target for bullying."

Maka couldn't help but blush at the "cute" comment. "You're telling me I should just take it?"

"I'm telling you not to get yourself in trouble. No Maka-chopping, no fights, nothing. Because they'll fight you back. With back-up. You let your emotions get in the way and you'll blow the mission. Understand?"

Maka's scowl deepened. Her eyes fell to her knees as she bit her lip stubbornly.

"Understand?"

Maka closed her eyes in defeat. "Yeah."

"Good." Soul got up to leave, but paused as he passed by Maka. He turned back to her, a small guilt twisting in his stomach. How much pressure did he just put on her, telling her that she, above everyone else, could cause the mission to fall apart?

"Maka."

Maka looked up at him, her eyes were full with self-doubt. Cringing, Soul sighed and ruffled her hair. "We're only concerned about you, okay? We don't want you to get hurt."

Maka reached up to push his hand away. "_You're_ concerned about me?"

"You're my meister. I'm supposed to be concerned, aren't I?" Flashing a small smile at her, Soul left the room to get their luggage.

Maka stared out the open door, stomach tingling lightly. She didn't know why either, she knew Soul was always concerned about her. But, for him to say it out loud, with that tone of sympathy. . .

Soul stuck his head back in the room, making Maka jump back. "Hey, Liz and Patty are making root beer floats. You want one?"

Maka smiled at Soul's offer. "S-Sure."

Soul smirked. "Then get off your ass and make one yourself."

He quickly ducked to avoid Maka's book.

* * *

"Good evening, Shinigami-sama."

"Ho-ho! You all spoke in perfect unison! Very good!"

Despite the unnecessary comment, the seven smiled proudly. They gat gathered in a circle around a small mirror on the coffee table, finding it easier to sit on their knees than each on the couches, leaving Shinigami-sama to talk to a ceiling instead of their faces.

"So, you all know tomorrow's a big day. I trust you've all remembered your false alibis? Good. Now, remember what I've told you. Keep it on the down-low, and don't let pesky high school rumors interfere with the mission. Before I go, I will give you this one piece of advice for you all to take to heart when you go into the school."

Shinigami-sama quickly ducked down, throwing his confused students off. Quickly, he stood back up with a giant golden clock around his neck and a tilted blue visor.

"Playas, they gonna play, and haters, they gonna hate. Ballers, they gonna ball, shot callers, they gonna call. But that ain't got nothin' to do with me and you, and that's the way it is."

The group gawked at the mirror, faces pale and jaws to the floor. _That's _his big advice?

Shinigami-sama flashed a V-sign before leaving. "Night, bi-zitches!"

And just like that, the mirror went blank. The roommates stared down at the mirror, an awkward silence filling the room.

". . . Your dad is weird."


End file.
